Authorities found six bodies and 154 cremated remains in a warehouse in Hayward, connected to an unlicensed crematorium, the Alameda County Sheriff's Office said Friday.

The Hayward-based crematorium, Oceanview Cremations Corporation, had allegedly been operating on a suspended license, Alameda County Lieutenant Tya Modeste told ABC7. KPIX reports via the sheriff's office that Oceanview had both a corporate and an individual license with the same name, but the corporate license was suspended in 2018, while the individual license was suspended in January 2023.

Authorities apparently learned that the business had continued its operation and was storing remains despite the lack of authorization. The coroner's bureau and a county-contracted funeral home recovered the remains on March 1, according to ABC7.

Many families had reportedly been trying to locate the remains of their loved ones for years. ABC7 reported that the crematorium’s manager didn’t answer these families’ calls, that the business’ website had been suspended, and that these extremely bleak Yelp reviews exist.

According to KPIX, the coroner's bureau and a county-contracted funeral home are now contacting the families of the identified bodies and remains. However, one body is reportedly still unidentified, and many of the remains are as well. The county coroner is seeking the public’s help identifying them.

Officers reportedly said that many of the remains were from deaths in between 2020 and 2021, and they’re unsure why they’ve been in storage for years. The entire organization is under investigation, they added.

Alameda County provided a list of the origins of the remains, with 64 from Alameda County; 23 from San Francisco County; 15 from San Mateo County; 10 from Contra Costa County; 9 from Marin and Santa Clara Counties; and still more.

Image of Oceanview Crematorium Storefront in Hayward via Google Street View.